The present invention relates to the field of educational aids, and, more particularly, to learning aids for cognitive matching skills and related methods.
One very effective method for teaching children the basic educational skills necessary to read, write, and use mathematics is through association. Generally speaking, at an early age children can begin to develop basic skills such as sorting objects based upon size, color, shape, etc., or matching similar objects together. These basic skills then provide the foundation for children to begin associating letters with their respective sounds and numbers with respective quantities of objects, for example. From there, children may then progress to the more advanced skills of reading, writing, and the use of mathematics.
Children""s games and toys have long been used to help teach children these important association skills. One example of a toy which helps young children develop sorting skills is toy blocks. Such blocks may come in a variety of shapes, colors, etc., which allow children to sort the blocks as they play. Other games, such as card games, may also be used for teaching matching skills. One such card game is concentration, in which several pairs of matching cards are arranged face down in rows and columns in a random order. Only two cards may be turned face up at the same time, and the player keeps turning up cards until all of the pairs are matched together. Such games thus teach children not only how to match two similar objects but also help develop memory skills.
One particular example of an educational word and letter game is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,740 to Visser et al. The educational game, which is based upon the popular xe2x80x9cbingoxe2x80x9d game, includes participant boards and a plurality of cards. The boards include a plurality of rows and columns defining boxes at their intersections, and the boxes each have a letter, word, or picture printed therein. Each card has one of letters, words, numbers, symbols, or pictures imprinted thereon that correspond to the participant""s boards. An instructor reads aloud the card and gives a brief explanation of the card""s contents. When a participant recognizes the card""s contents on his board, he will cover the respective box with a marker (e.g., a bean). The object of the game is to complete a row or other predetermined sequence of boxes prior to another participant. Also, different boards having increasingly more advanced indicia thereon may be used along with corresponding sets of cards for different skill levels.
While the above prior art game may prove helpful in developing matching skills, it may be disadvantageous in certain applications as it requires numerous boards and card sets be used to teach different skill levels. Moreover, because the game requires the use of markers which may be relatively small, this game may only be suitable for older children (i.e., several years of age) and not toddlers, for example.
In view of the foregoing background, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide and educational aid for learning cognitive matching skills.
This and other objects, features, and advantages in accordance with the present invention are provided by a cognitive matching skill learning aid which may include a base having a plurality of different object images thereon and a respective matching block for each object image on the base. The blocks may be movable relative to the base. Moreover, each matching block may have a plurality of sides, and the sides of a given matching block may have different indicia thereon representative of different cognitive matching skill levels with respect to the corresponding object image on the base. Thus, a single base and set of matching blocks may advantageously be used for teaching progressively more advanced matching skills to children as they grow and reach new developmental levels, for example.
More particularly, the indicia on each matching block may be one of the following: the respective object image for the matching block; a name of the respective object image for the matching block; and at least one of an upper case initial letter of a name of the respective object image for the matching block and a lower case initial letter of the name of the respective object image for the matching block. Furthermore, one of the indicia on each matching block may be an arbitrary indicia for grouping matching blocks based upon common characteristics between respective object images thereof.
In particular, the arbitrary indicia may be colors, and the common characteristics may include at least one of names of the object images beginning with long vowel sounds, names of the object images beginning with short vowel sounds, names of the object images beginning with consonants, and object images corresponding to numbers. Thus, by way of example, red indicia on a side of a matching block may correspond to object images with names beginning with short vowel sounds, blue indicia may correspond to object image names beginning with long vowel sounds, yellow indicia may correspond to numbers, etc.
Additionally, object images having names beginning with long vowel sounds may be positioned adjacent a center of the base. Also, object images having names beginning with short vowel sounds and consonants may be positioned adjacent a periphery of the base. The learning aid may also include a plurality of legs supporting the base. That is, the base could be a table top or a chair/stool seat, for example. Alternately, the base may be made of cardboard to provide a more portable xe2x80x9cboard gamexe2x80x9d style leaning aid.
A method aspect of the invention is for teaching cognitive matching skills and may include providing a base and matching blocks therefor as briefly described above, for example. The method may also include positioning matching blocks on the base adjacent respective object images based upon one of the indicia on the matching blocks.